"Bob (this one)" > wrote in message
...
> Harlan Messinger wrote:
>
> > An article in this month's Gourmet discusses Harold McGee, author of
> > "On Food and Cooking", which many restaurant kitchens, reportedly, use
> > as a bible, and which is coming out in an entirely reworked edition
> > next month. According to the article, "the original [edition] is
> > renowned for having destroyed the myth, popularized in the mid-1800s
> > by German chemist Justus von Liebig, that searing meat would seal in
> > its juices."
> >
> > I've made any number of current recipes that call for browning meat
> > before braising or stewing it. Is McGee mistaken? Are the authors of
> > these recipes out of touch with modern science on the subject? Is the
> > pre-searing being done for some reason other than to seal in the
> > juices? Or can I safely skip the inconvenience of the browning step
> > from now on?
>
> Any method that brings heat to meat will cause loss of moisture.
> Protein shrinks and releases its captive water-based juices. Searing
> is for developing the Maillard reactions that add that wonderful depth
> of flavor. There is no sealing of juices no matter the method, tools,
> coatings or anything else is brought to bear. Cooking meat releases
> juices.
>
> You'll still see recipes and even live cooks talking about sealing in
> the juices. When that happens, you know what you're dealing with.

OK, thanks, all!